Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $21.31 Million in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in International Paper (NYSE:IP) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 395,895 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,307,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.11% of International Paper at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 88.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 17,839,237 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $871,447,000 after buying an additional 8,370,273 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 1.2% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,368,401 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $407,463,000 after buying an additional 99,720 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 0.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,579,679 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $174,867,000 after buying an additional 9,774 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 19.5% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,295,926 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $161,006,000 after buying an additional 537,825 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 511.1% in the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,970,432 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $145,106,000 after buying an additional 2,484,386 shares in the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on IP shares. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 price objective (down previously from $65.00) on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup started coverage on International Paper in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America started coverage on International Paper in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 price objective on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $54.86.

International Paper Price Performance

Shares of IP opened at $51.44 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $27.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.76, a PEG ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $55.18 and a 200-day moving average of $53.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. International Paper has a 52 week low of $33.16 and a 52 week high of $60.36.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.05). International Paper had a return on equity of 4.75% and a net margin of 2.99%. As a group, analysts forecast that International Paper will post 2.77 EPS for the current year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a $0.4625 dividend. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 117.83%.

About International Paper

International Paper Company produces and sells renewable fiber-based packaging and pulp products in North America, Latin America, Europe, and North Africa. It operates through two segments, Industrial Packaging and Global Cellulose Fibers. The company offers linerboard, medium, whitetop, recycled linerboard, recycled medium and saturating kraft; and pulp for a range of applications, such as diapers, towel and tissue products, feminine care, incontinence, and other personal care products, as well as specialty pulps for use in textiles, construction materials, paints, coatings, and others.